METROPOLITAN ONUPHRY OF KIEV AND ALL UKRAINE TURNS 76 TODAY
Kiev, November 5, 2020
Photo: spzh.news
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and All Ukraine, the primate of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church, turns 76 today.
The future spiritual leader of the Ukrainian Orthodox faithful was born Orest Berezovsky on November 5, 1944, in the village of Korytnoe in the Chernivtsi Province in western Ukraine, in the family of a priest. After finishing technical school and college, he entered the Moscow Theological Seminary. During his time there, he took monastic vows at the Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, and went on to hold various positions in the Church. He served as dean of the Lavra, abbot of the Holy Dormition-Pochaev Lavra in Ukraine, and ruling hierarch of the Chernivtsi Diocese, before being elected Metropolitan of Kiev and All Ukraine on August 13, 2014.
His Beatitude is greatly loved and enjoys great authority throughout Ukraine and the entire Orthodox world. As the Ukrainian Church faces persecution from the state and schismatic groups, and betrayal from their own Orthodox brothers, Met. Onuphry guides the Church with love, humility, prayer, and patience endurance.
His Eminence Metropolitan Athanasios of Limassol of the Church of Cyprus has said about his leadership under such difficult circumstances: “I’m very impressed, and I very much admire how Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev has handled this crisis: with great calmness, with great dignity, with few words, with few statements, and with many prayers.”
In honor of His Beatitude’s birthday, the hierarchs, clergy, and faithful of the Ukrainian Church have offered loving congratulatory messages to their primate, several of which have been compiled by the Union of Orthodox Journalists.
His Eminence Metropolitan Luke of Zaporozhye writes:
With your life, you bear witness to the true joy of being, the joy of communion with God, and the joy of living in accordance with the Gospel law.
You have been chosen to serve as a leader during a difficult period in the history of Ukraine. The economic, political, and social difficulties that our country is experiencing require your wisdom, patience, and spiritual judgment.
We believe that your prayers and active efforts will build up the Orthodox faith, civil harmony, and stability in our blessed land. We wish from the bottom of our hearts to be your faithful helpers in this. We constantly pray to God and ask Him to grant Your Beatitude good health, firmness in following the path of Christian witness, and abundant help in carrying the difficult cross of the primatial ministry!
His Eminence Metropolitan Barsanuphius of Vinnitsa writes: “We congratulate His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry with his 76th birthday!!! Many years!”
His Grace Bishop Viktor of Baryshevka also congratulated the Ukrainian primate:
Photo: spzh.news
The teachers and students of the Kiev Theological Academy specifically prayed for His Beatitude on the occasion of his birthday at Liturgy this morning, and greeted him on the Academy’s Facebook page as well, saying:
Your Beatitude! On this festive day of your birth, your Kiev theological schools, together with the multi-million-strong flock of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church offer their fervent prayers to our greatly merciful God and Savior to keep you in good health and good spirits. May the Most Holy Theotokos and all the saints who have shown forth in our Fatherland, be constant intercessors for Your Beatitude and our Ukrainian people.
Archimandrite Chrysostom (Grischenko) of the Zverinetsky Monastery writes:
Photo: spzh.news
November 5 is the birthday of the primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Although, according to monastic tradition, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry does not celebrate birthdays, all of us, the children of our Church, cordially congratulate him on this day and thank God that we have such a wise primate, who is a symbol of Church unity and steadfastness for the purity of the Orthodox faith in difficult times. Many blessed years!
The faithful of the Rivne Diocese recorded a video with birthday wishes to His Beatitude and a musical composition:
The Odessa Diocese wrote on its Facebook page: “We congratulate our dear primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church—His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and all Ukraine on his birthday!!! We wish him many, long, saving years of primatial service!”
Fr. Nikolai Danilevich, the Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Church’s Department for External Church Relations, wrote on his Telegram channel: “Today is the birthday of our Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kiev and all Ukraine! 76 years old! We congratulate him and wish him health and God’s help, and may his sincere smile bring joy us all!”
Photo: spzh.news
***
And from all of us at OrthoChristian, we wish His Beatitude many blessed years of faithful service to God, His Church, and the Ukrainian Orthodox faithful!
11/5/2020
During his recent visit to Montenegro, Met. Onuphry gave an interview to the Svetigora radio station on February 28, in which he spoke of the persecution against Church both in Ukraine and in Montenegro, and of his vision for Ukraine, among other things.
